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The United States faces many transportation challenges. Public transit-especially in our nation's most densely populated corridors-helps to ensure that these challenges are met while protecting our environment. Tell your Senator to support legislation that would provide necessary resources for reducing our nation's traffic and runway congestion. Congestion in our airways as well as on our roads and highways remain unresolved issues. Americans are increasingly frustrated with this trend, but trends are not destiny. We can take steps to solve the problems, and Americans are already showing that they're enthusiastic alternatives to driving. According to the American Public Transit Association, modes of transportation showing the largest percentage increases in ridership for 2000 for heavy rail (subways), 7.6 percent; demand response or paratransit (shuttles), 5.9 percent; light rail, 5.3 percent; and commuter rail, 5.2 percent. Ridership increased from coast to coast, in large cities, suburban communities and in small towns. Clearly, Americans are voting with their feet on transportation issues: They want more choices. As we work to reduce air pollution from mobile sources, we must continue to identify and invest in more transportation options, such as high speed rail, that have the potential to reduce air pollution and maddening congestion. Passing S. 250 will take us a long way towards the goals of cleaner air and greater mobility. Please fax, email and call your Senators now and urge them to support S. 250, the High Speed Rail Investment Act of 2001. Sample Letter Dear Senator, I urge you to support the High Speed Rail Investment Act of 2001 (S. 250) that would help relieve our nation's traffic and runway congestion by investing in high speed rail corridors. Expansion of our rail system would help reduce congestion, promote smart growth through economic revitalization of downtown areas, and spur economic growth through enhanced mobility. The average American driver spends 443 hours every year - that is the equivalent of 55 eight-hour workdays or 11 weeks of work - behind the wheel. Traffic congestion leads to decreased air quality. Cars, trucks and buses have become our country's biggest source of cancer-causing air pollution, spewing more than 12 billion pounds of toxic chemicals each year. Adding new lanes and building new roads only exacerbates the problem by making people more reliant on their cars, leading to even more sprawl. Air travel is another source of both frustration and pollution that could be reduced by railways. A great deal of the air travel in the U.S. is for trips under 400 miles: Los Angeles - San Francisco; Sacramento - Los Angeles; Boston - New York - Washington; Chicago - New York. In all of these cases, high-speed rail could reduce air traffic in our increasingly congested airports and air routes, and would be a great alternative to constructing more airports. By supporting S. 250 - legislation that would begin to address the historic imbalance of money spent on highways instead of on alternatives such as rail - you can help curb traffic and runway congestion. I urge you to support this legislation that will give Americans alternatives to sitting in traffic. For more information contact Melody Flowers at 202.675-7915 or challenge.sprawl@sierraclub.org Up to Top | Printer-friendly version of this page |
